Current Affairs Quiz-September, 2020

Notes:
The Government of Gujarat has announced the state’s first Heritage Tourism Policy. The policy permits use of historic buildings (pre-1950 historical buildings) such as heritage palaces and forts, as heritage hotels, heritage museums, heritage banquet halls and heritage restaurants etc.
Under the policy, the State Government will offer an aid of Rs. 5 – 10 crore for renovation of these heritage structures.

Notes:
The Government of India has set up a Panel for assessment of relief to borrowers.
It is a 3-member panel headed by Rajiv Mehrishi, who is the former Comptroller and Auditor General of India. The panel will measure the impact of the pandemic related restrictions on Indian economy and also study the viability of waiving interest on interest on the pandemic-related moratorium.

Notes:
Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar virtually addressed the inaugural session of the intra-Afghan talks, being held in Doha.
Earlier this week, the Minister had visited Iran and discussed the Chabahar port project and the situation in Afghanistan. The Defence Minister also met his counterpart in Iran. India had earlier attended the signing of the US-Taliban pact on February 29.

Notes:
A new study published in the Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology has found that Vitamin D supplements can decrease the rate of ICU admissions due to Covid-19.
The vitamin is found to be stimulating immune responses against various diseases including the novel coronavirus. The study was conducted on 76 patients who tested positive for Covid-19 in Spain. The patients who received the supplement were discharged without complications.

Notes:
UN Day for South- South Cooperation is observed every year on September 12.
South-South cooperation is a manifestation of solidarity among countries of the South which aims to attain various development goals. It marks the 42nd anniversary of the 1978 adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.

Notes:
National Engineers Day is celebrated on September 15 across the country, to mark the birth anniversary of eminent engineer M Visvesvaraya.
Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya was born on September 15, 1861 in Karnataka. He served as the Chief engineer in Mysore and had contributed to several technical projects in Hyderabad, Mysore, Maharashtra and Odisha, including the block system of irrigation in the Deccan canals.

Notes:
India has been elected as a Member of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. The 54-member Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is a functional body of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Elections were held for 2 seats in Asia Pacific states, where India, Afghanistan and China contested. India won the election to secure a seat in the CSW.

Notes:
The Rajya Sabha has recently passed the Aircraft (Amendment) Bill 2020, which was tabled by Civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri
The bill has already been cleared by the Lok Sabha in March this year. It seeks to convert aviation agencies like the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Bureau of Civil aviation security (BCAS) and Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into statutory bodies. It also proposes heavy punishment for violations.

Notes:
The former President of West African nation Mali, Moussa Traore, has recently passed away at the age of 83.
The veteran leader had ruled the African country for more than 22 years. Eight years after Mali gained independence from France, Traore entered into power in a military rebellion, succeeding the country’s first president, Modibo Keita.

Notes:
India’s central Bank, t he Reserve Bank of India has issued draft guidelines on Interest Rate Derivatives (IDRs).
IRDs are contracts whose value is derived from one or more interest rates, prices of interest rate instruments, or interest rate indices. RBI has allowed foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) to undertake exchange traded rupee IRD transactions subject to an overall ceiling of Rs.5,000 crore.